Chapter Two
Skye drove her cruiser up Marsville’s Main Street. Horace County, of which she was the sheriff, was only three hundred and fifty-three square miles in the North Carolina foothills. Not the smallest county in the country, but certainly not the biggest. The county government was located in Marsville, and she had a meeting with the city mayor in an hour. She was early because there was no better way to start her day than breakfast at Katie’s Corner Kitchen.
Spying a parking spot one door down from the restaurant, she aimed for it. An ancient turquoise Cadillac cut her off, stealing her space. Skye banged her hand on the steering wheel. “One day, Miss Mabel, I’m going to write your scrawny butt another ticket.” She’d tried that once after clocking the old bat going fifteen miles over the speed limit. Miss Mabel had laughed, handed the ticket back to her, and told her to give it to Luther, Luther being Marsville’s mayor and Mabel Mackel’s nephew.
Skye found a spot on the other side of the street. Her mouth already watering, she headed for the restaurant. The Kitchen, as it was referred to by locals, had the best ham, egg, and cheese omelet in the world. And the buttermilk biscuits, so melt-in-your-mouth good. She couldn’t eat here every morning or she’d have to order larger uniforms, but she tried to start her week off with breakfast at Katie’s on Monday mornings. And yes, there really was a Katie.
“Good morning, Sheriff,” Katie said as Skye slipped onto a bar stool at the counter. “The usual?”
“Morning, Katie. Always the usual.”
Katie stepped to the back counter, picked up a coffeepot and a plate of steaming hot biscuits. She set the plate down in front of Skye and filled her coffee cup. “One usual coming right up.”
“Thanks,” Skye said around a mouthful of buttery biscuit. She liked sitting at the counter since it gave her a chance to talk to people, and she glanced to her left. “Morning, Earl.”
He grunted, which was about all the greeting she’d get out of him. It was all he gave anyone, so she didn’t take it personally. “You keeping Billy out of trouble?” Billy being his goat, and that Earl had named his goat Billy amused her.
The goat was a terror, though. At the moment, he’d be waiting in Earl’s fifty-something-year-old pickup, eating more of the seats. There wasn’t much left except for metal now, so maybe Billy was starting on the dash. Didn’t seem to bother Earl that his goat was eating him out of a truck from the inside out. The old man loved that creature.
“Billy ain’t no trouble, Sheriff.”
She begged to differ but wisely kept her opinion to herself. Nothing could get Earl fired up more than dissing his goat.
The bell over the door chimed, and she glanced over to see who was entering. The coffee she was swallowing went down the wrong way, causing a coughing fit.
“You okay, Skylar?” Parker Church said, walking straight to her and patting her on the back. That was just like Parker. He was the sweet, quiet brother. He was also the one who’d tipped her off about Tristan’s drills. Tristan would never suspect Parker, and she’d never tattle. He was sure it had been Kade, which was the kind of thing Kade would have done if he’d thought of it.
Kade stepped next to him, devilment in his eyes. “Need mouth to mouth, Sheriff?”
She rolled her eyes. Kade was the brother always up for shenanigans. Standing behind his brothers, Tristan glared at Kade, then slid his gaze over her. She willed herself not to react. How did he do that? Make her goose bumpy with a mere skim of his eyes? However he did it, he needed to stop. She’d never responded to a man the way she did him, and it was downright annoying.
“I’m okay, Parker, and no, Kade, I don’t need mouth to mouth.” She dipped her chin in Tristan’s general direction. “Chief.”
He bumped Kade, forcing his brother to step away. “Morning, Sheriff.” He flicked the corner of her mouth with his finger. “Had a biscuit crumb there.”
“Uh...thanks.” He’d only done that because he knew it would irritate her, and it did, but no way she’d let him see that. He softly chuckled as if he could read her mind. And did he have to smell so good? Like the forest on a crisp autumn day. All woodsy and fresh.
Seeing one Church brother at a time was enough to turn a woman’s head, but seeing the three together? Every woman, single and not single, young and old, inside the Kitchen was sighing into her coffee. But really, only one of those brothers did it for her, and had she said how annoying that was?
All three were tall, an inch or two over six feet, and had similar features: eyes the color of dark chocolate, strong jaws, and full pillowy lips. The biggest difference between them was their hair. Parker had long, brown hair that he kept pulled back in a ponytail that matched his artsy self. Kade’s was almost black and scraggly, and he sported a beard. He’d never said exactly what his role in the military was, but she suspected he was Special Forces. Then there was Tristan. His short hair was caramel colored with blond highlights in the sunshine. Women paid a lot of money to get that color and those highlights. It wasn’t fair.
The brothers moved to a booth, and Skye poured half the ice water down her throat that Katie pushed her way with a chuckle. It was useless to deny she was hot and bothered, because what woman in the room wasn’t, but at least Katie thought it was just from seeing the Church brothers en masse.
Her breakfast arrived, and Skye tried to concentrate on her omelet and not think of the night she’d spent with Tristan last year, but her mind refused to obey. He’d cast some kind of spell over her, and she hadn’t even considered the consequences of sleeping with a local. That wasn’t like her. She always considered the consequences of her actions, especially after Danny. But that night, the hot-as-sin man in the bar had crooked his finger, and she’d followed him like a lovesick puppy. Well, he’d actually followed her back to her motel room, but semantics.
Most sheriffs were elected by the voters, but a few counties like Horace appointed their sheriff. More than ready to get out of Central Florida, she’d been watching for law enforcement openings in states north of Florida when she’d seen that Horace County was looking for a sheriff. As the chief deputy sheriff, reporting directly to the sheriff in her county, she was qualified for the job and had applied. As a female, she hadn’t been sure she’d even get an interview, but she had.
Because she’d wanted to get the lay of the land before her interview, she’d come up a few days early so she could look around. She’d only gone to Beam Me Up to check out the bar, having identified it as a place she would likely get called to when trouble started. If she got the job, that was. One drink to justify hanging out for a while and getting a feel for the people had led to a night of the best sex she’d ever had. How was she supposed to know the man was Marsville’s police chief?
That was her fault, so she couldn’t hold that against him. She was the one who had insisted on first names only and no sharing of personal details. It was stupid really to think she’d never see him again, considering how small the county was, but thinking hadn’t been her strong point that night. That—her inability to think—was his fault. He’d bedazzled her. Yeah, that was a good word for what he’d done to her.
Two days later she was interviewed by the county commissioners, and a week later, offered the job. A month after her best ever sex night, she reported for duty and was introduced to Marsville’s police chief. His eyes had lit up at seeing her. She’d panicked and pretended like she’d never seen him before, and the light in his eyes had died. But what did he expect? For her to tell him in front of the people in the room that she’d dreamed about him and their night together? Uh...no.
Later, when her brain was working again, she realized she could have told him it was nice to see him again and explained to the others that they’d met when she was exploring the town or something like that. No one had to know sex was involved. But the damage was done, and she stubbornly doubled down on her lie. Since then, their relationship was filled with tension, not of the good kind, and she didn’t know how to fix it.
Even though her back was to him, she could feel Tristan’s eyes on her. She needed to finish her breakfast and go. Usually, she’d take her time and enjoy her omelet, but not today. Five minutes after the Church brothers arrived, she was done. She left enough money to pay for her breakfast and a tip under her plate. “See you next Monday, Earl.”
He grunted.